Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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219. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the number of new taxi and hackney licences granted in County Donegal for each of the years 2019 to 2022, and to date in 2023; the total number of licences, taxis and hackneys operating in County Donegal by location in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3198/23]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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The regulation of the small public service vehicle (SPSV) sector, including the compilation of statistics on SPSV licensing, is a matter for the independent transport regulator, the National Transport Authority (NTA), under the provisions of the Taxi Regulation Acts 2013 and 2016.

Accordingly, I have referred your question to the NTA for direct reply to you. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a response within 10 working days.

Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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220. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he has considered allowing the transferring of taxi licences; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3199/23]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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The regulation of the small public service vehicle (SPSV) industry including licensing, is a matter for the independent transport regulator, the National Transport Authority (NTA), under the provisions of the Taxi Regulation Acts 2013 and 2016.

The Deputy may be aware that the transfer of licences for SPSVs is, at present, prohibited under section 14(1) of the Taxi Regulation Act, 2013. All SPSV vehicle licences are unique to the person to whom the licence has been issued and cannot be transferred or sold to another person.

The current licensing regime is built on the principle that a licence should have no monetary value or be traded on the open market and should simply indicate a person’s suitability to carry out the role of taxi operator, as decided by Revenue, An Garda Síochána and the National Transport Authority (NTA).

In line with its functions under the Taxi Regulation Act, 2013, the NTA requested the Advisory Committee on Small Public Service Vehicles to conduct a review of the issue of licence transferability. The Committee had been preparing advice on transferability for both single licence holders and corporate taxi businesses prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, when all such matters were paused to deal with the urgent supports within its remit.

The Advisory Committee submitted a report and recommendations on this issue to the Minister and the NTA in late 2022. Both the Minister and the NTA are examining the advice received from the Committee on this issue, and a decision will be made in due course.